In Bloom - Felix Volturi

17. Vulnerability

Felix all but carried me off of the plane at the end of our sixteen hour flight, once we landed in Texas.

I was a mess, and although I was able to appear at least somewhat composed on the outside, I found myself surprisingly comforted by Felix's presence.

I didn't protest when he carted me off to the nearest four star hotel, rather than renting a car and hitting the road. I got a little sleep on the plane, but it was trash, and I really needed an actual good night's sleep - especially since I would be dealing with the inevitable confrontation with my band once I finally showed my face again.

"Do you need help getting into bed?" Felix asked once we'd made it to the hotel room. It was spacious, and tastefully decorated with light furniture and gold accents - a decadence I never would've thought to enjoy before I joined the Volturi coven.

"No, thanks," I said as I crossed the immaculate marble floor toward the en suite bathroom. "I'm going to take a quick shower and try to sober up a bit." I knew a shower probably wouldn't do much, but I had to at least try something.

Felix shrugged unceremoniously.

To my chagrin, as I continued toward the bathroom, I staggered a bit. I was still pretty unsteady on my feet, apparently, so I paused long enough to pull off my shoes before closing the door behind me in the bathroom.

Once alone, I peeled off my dress, being careful not to let myself fall, and staggered over to the large, sleek shower stall. I turned on the water and waited impatiently for it to heat up. Really, I just wanted to get the shower over with so I could crawl in bed and sleep it off.

When I deemed the water hot enough, I stepped into the stall and sighed as the hot water streamed over. As I stood there, I was overtaken by an excruciatingly large wave of fatigue. I was absolutely exhausted.

I eyeballed the bar of soap on the built-in soap dish, still neatly wrapped in it's paper wrapper, but I couldn't bring myself to reach out and grab it. Instead, I leaned back against the cool wall tiles and slid down the wall, sinking to the floor.

I waited, hoping my energy would return, but after twenty minutes, I had to admit defeat and call for help.

"Felix," I called for him, hating how feeble I sounded.

"Yes?" he replied through the door; he seemed hesitant to enter.

"Come here," I said. "I need your help."

Felix cracked the door open and stuck his head into the room. "You're naked," he observed.

"I know, but I need your help getting up." I was so tired, I really couldn't have cared less if Felix saw me nude. It's not like he wouldn't have seen it eventually.

Felix stepped through the door, projecting his usual confidence, and crossed the room, taking off his suit jacket and his shirt as he did so. He neatly set them on the sink counter before picking up a towel from underneath the sink and approaching me.

As he came closer, the reality of him seeing me naked began to actually sink in through my intoxicated haze, but I needed him, so I didn't wave him off as he opened the shower door.

Felix leaned down and took my arm, gently helping me to my feet. The walls were swimmy when I stood, causing me to lose my balance a bit when he let me go, but he caught me by the arm again before I could fall.

"Sorry," I muttered, looking away from him quickly as I took the towel and wrapped myself in it.

"There's no need to apologize," he assured me. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," I replied, gripping the edge of the counter for support.

Felix let go of my arm apprehensively, but still stayed close. Understandably, it was clear that he didn't trust me to stand on my own two feet anymore. How embarrassing.